Marcus Mumford Working On Hip-Hop Project

Toronto, ON, Canada / 102.1 the Edge

April 20, 2015 09:34 am

Mumford & Sons frontman Marcus Mumford is working on a new and very different project — a hip-hop endeavor with rapper and producer 88-Keys. Mumford told NME, “I’ve been getting into [hip hop] again recently. I’ve been hanging out with an amazing guy called 88-Keys to learn how to chop up beats. That’s really fun for me.”

Asked if his involvement with a rap project will alienate fans of his band’s folk-rock sound, Mumford replied, “I don’t really care about how (Mumford & Sons are) seen right now, because I think the story of this band will be a long one. People are always going to say stuff in the moment, but I hope that the arc of the band will be interesting.”

88-Keys is best known for his work with Kanye West and Jay Z on their 2011 album, Watch The Throne. Mumford recently called West “the only rock star left.”

Mumford & Sons fans are already in a daze after hearing the first two songs from the band’s upcoming album, Wilder Mind. The tracks, “Believe” and “The Wolf,” display a drastic shift in style from banjo-inflected modern folk to guitar-driven anthemic rock.

The new disc will arrive in stores on May 4th, with the English rockers kicking off on a North American tour on June 2nd in Brooklyn.